| abstract | - The idea first came into existence after a 2002 interview with Eiji Aonuma and Shigeru Miyamoto (both developers for the same series) over The Wind Waker. In it, Aonuma stated that Ocarina of Time had two endings, one where Link was a child, and another where he was an adult. The two did not further elaborate on the subject at the time. After The Wind Waker was released many fans speculated that the series had two timelines because of storyline problems The Wind Waker had with fitting in with other games in the series (e.g. Hyrule being destroyed at the end, and Ganondorf not being sealed up at the end to set up for A Link to the Past). Despite this however, belief in the theory remained a minority opinion. However, the release of Twilight Princess brought new life into the split timeline, as Ganondorf's role in the game seemed to contradict his roles in The Wind Waker and Ocarina of Time. During a 2006 interview with the Japanese magazine Nintendo Dream, Eiji Aonuma reaffirmed what he had said earlier and stated that the timeline within the Zelda series did indeed follow this order. Since then the split timeline has generally been accepted as fact by most of the Zelda community. It has also been confirmed by Aonuma that Skyward Sword takes place before the events of Ocarina of Time; thus being the only confirmed title set before the timeline split. According to the timeline included in the Hyrule Historia, there is also a third alternate timeline, in which Link fails to defeat Ganondorf during Ocarina of Time. This timeline proceeds into the Imprisoning War, A Link to the Past, the Oracle games, Link's Awakening, The Legend of Zelda, and The Adventure of Link.
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